9.0. SR 10-15-2001 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Park Department Formation Report to the Elk River City Council October 200 I Page 3 Introduction During the February 28, 2000 joint meeting of the Park and Recreation Commission and the Elk River City Council, the concept of a dedicated Park and Recreation Department with its own director was discussed. At that time, there were concerns over the longevity of the Community Recreation JPA with the cities of Hassan, Rogers, and Otsego. By the end of 2000, Hassan had announced its withdrawal from the JPA. At the joint meeting, the Council authorized the Commission to investigate the implications of developing a dedicated Park and Recreation Department for the City of Elk River. Since that time, the City of Otsego has announced its decision to leave the JPA, and beginning in January 2002, the City of Elk River will be responsible for providing recreation programming on its own. Why is the Commission concerned about the current lack of a dedicated Park and Recreation Department? Traditionally, parks and recreation have included three components: park planning/development, park maintenance, and recreational programming. Currently, the these components are provided by what has been described as a "three legged stool" with no single- focused leader or "seat": Director of Planning provides: agenda preparation, subdivision review for park dedication purposes, park design Superintendent of Streets/Parks provides: park maintenance and construction services Program Manager provides: programming services The Commission does not doubt the dedication of these individuals to the development of the City's park and recreation system, however, is this the most efficient or timely provision of service to the citizens of Elk River and those outside the community who may visit and utilize our parks? The Commission believes there is a better way to provide these services. A recent example of the lack of timely service is the length of time that it has taken to develop a master plan for the Youth Athletic Complex. A Director dedicated solely to the maintenance and development of parks would have been able to focus on the task without the conflict of other job duties (i.e. land use planning or street maintenance). In addition, two of the above individuals are not formally trained in the study of parks and recreation and therefore are not current with park and recreation trends. This report was written to answer four related questions. The answers to these questions in turn shape the Commissions recommendations to the City Council regarding the question of should the City centralize these important functions? 1. How does the City of Elk River currently serve the Park and Recreation needs of the community? 2. How might the City structure itself to meet future needs? 3. If the City established a separate Parks and Recreation Department - what would be different and why? 4. What are the financial costs of any recommended changes? The Commission has used information from a variety of sources in the writing of this report including site visits to Community Recreation, the Parks and Streets Department, the Monticello Parks and Recreation Department, interviews with a number of parks and recreation administrators